Petitions Filed for Citizen's Bill of Fracking Rights
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – As workers moved into their third day of cleanup at a Mahoning River tributary contaminated because of intentionally dumped brine water and mud from oil and gas drilling operations, activists opposed to the industry delivered what they believe is a clear message to City Hall.
"We have the right to drink our water unpolluted," declared Lynn Anderson, a member of FrackFree Mahoning Valley, a group that opposes the practice of hydraulic fracturing. "We have the right to survive."
Members of FrackFree Mahoning Valley presented a Citizens' Bill of Rights petition signed by nearly 3,800 residents to the clerk of City Council Wednesday in an effort to place the measure on the ballot during the primary election May 7.
"It's about letting the people decide," said Susie Beiersdorfer. "This bill of rights exercises our citizens' inalienable rights to clean air, clean water, and the right to have enjoyment in our homes free from toxic trespass."
The petition secured 3,792 signatures, well beyond the 2,836 required to place the measure before City Council and on the ballot, Beiersdorfer said.
"This will give the citizens the right to vote whether they want fracking and injection wells in our area," added Chris Khumprakob, who went door-to-door across the city seeking signatures for the petition. "I believe the citizens of Youngstown will vote to protect our clean air and water, and our Mahoning River, and Mill Creek Park."
Workers from Sunpro Environmental were busy yesterday afternoon cleaning a tributary to the Mahoning River that was contaminated with brine water intentionally dumped Thursday at the D&L Energy Group site along Salt Springs Road in Youngstown.
Documents released late Tuesday by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency show that workers from Hard Rock Excavating, a company owned by D&L owner Ben Lupo, dumped about 20,000 gallons of contaminated water from drilling operations in a storm drain Thursday. Subsequent news reports have said the amount of drilling waste dumped could be as much as 40,000 gallons.
D&L's address at 2761 Salt Springs Road is also the same address as Hard Rock Excavating.
A criminal investigation is under way.
D&L Energy spokesman Vince Bevacqua emphasized that company was not involved in the incident, but cited "other companies" that worked at the same location.
"It is D&L's understanding that those other companies are working with state authorities to determine exactly what happened and why."
Bevacqua said he does not work for Lupo's Hard Rock Excavating, and could not comment.
Brine is the term given to wastewater resulting from oil and gas drilling operations and the practice of hydraulic fracturing. The process calls for injecting millions of gallons of water and sand, as well as a mixture of chemicals, into the earth at high pressure to break apart tight shale formations in order to unleash trapped gas.
Contaminated water from the drill sites are stored in injection wells, which is D&L's core business. The company's Northstar injection well in Youngstown was linked to 12 earthquakes in 2011 and early 2012, and was ordered shut down.
However, OEPA documents show that brine water was intentionally dumped at the D&L property into the storm drain, which then spilled into a tributary of the Mahoning River that runs behind the Toys R' Us warehouse and distribution center.
Lupo has admitted to the dumping and has accepted full responsibility, state records show.
"This is really the tip of the iceberg," Beiersdorfer said. "It's not just one bad company or one bad incident. Just look at Pennsylvania and you see how many dumps and spills have occurred."
Public officials expressed frustration and anger at the incident.
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-13, issued a scathing statement Wednesday in reaction to the dumping.
"I am furious that up to 20,000 gallons of wastewater was dumped into a storm drain on Salt Springs Road," Ryan said. "My understanding is that Hard Rock Excavating and its employees blatantly disregarded multiple rules and regulations on the books and put our local environment at risk."
Ryan noted that he was reassured that the OEPA and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources are investigating the matter and that "criminal charges will be filed."
Ryan, a strong proponent of oil and gas exploration in the Utica shale in Ohio, added that the industry could have a huge impact on the region's economy, but only if the proper rules and regulations are followed.
"Anyone who purposely puts Ohio's environment in harm's way should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Ryan declared.
State Rep. Robert Hagan, in a letter to OEPA Director Scott Nally Tuesday, said that the incident "poses a clear and present danger to the citizens of the Mahoning Valley," and struck out at the agency over its disregard to communication and transparency over the issue.
"I am appalled by not only the recklessness of the illegal dumping, but also of the secrecy and lack of communication and transparency surrounding the incident," Hagan wrote. "Why did it take the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency four days just to release a cursory statement that provides little detail or insight into the dumping fiasco? And why do elected officials from Youngstown, myself included, continue to be kept in the dark on specifics?"
Such environmental dangers serve as evidence as to why more local control and regulation is needed over the industry, Beiersdorfer said.
The Community Bill of Rights would ban toxic waste that is stored, injected or transported through the community, Beiersdorfer said. The signatures would be validated by the Council clerk's office, and then the referendum would be placed before City Council as an ordinance so it could be placed on the ballot.
She noted that communities such as Mansfield and Pittsburgh have both passed similar ordinances through their respective local legislatures.
FrackFree Mahoning Valley's Khumprakob adds that the environmental risks outweigh any jobs created as a result of the industry.
"We're going to win," she said. "I think people understand that what's the good of having jobs if we don't have clean air and water, and the cancer rate skyrockets?"
Copyright 2013 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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